Platinum Studios Snags Brian Altounian For COO

Platinum Studios, an entertainment company that controls the world's largest independent library of comicbook characters, has appointed Brian Altounian Platinum Studios as coo. Altounian brings with him more than 17years of experience in the entertainment and high-tech industry, having overseen operations of the west coast offices of National Geographic Television and Time Warner Interactive.

His experience in the online and interactive space complements many of the growth directions for Platinum as he will be responsible for managing fiscal growth and staffing at the company.

"Brian's fiscal acumen and ability to manage operations will be a tremendous asset for Platinum Studios," said Scott Mitchell Rosenberg, chairman of Platinum Studios. "His senior leadership experience and background with entertainment and multi-media properties strengthens our digital strategy for business development and acquisitions in the online, interactive and wireless industries."

Platinum Studios recently struck partnerships with Gold Circle Films and The Shop as well as acquired Hexagon Comics, adding hundreds of characters and more than 50 years of publishing history, so that Platinum's library features more than 2,500 characters. Platinum Studios has also acquired the exclusive rights to develop Top Cow's extensive library of comicbook characters for film and television.

"Platinum Studios' library of characters has potential across so many entertainment platforms that I feel like a kid in a candy store," said Altounian. "The Platinum team that Scott has brought together is one of the strongest and most enthusiastic groups of people that I have had the chance to work with and what we have in development will make a huge impact on the industry."

In addition to his efforts at Time Warner Interactive and National Geographic, Altounian consulted for a number of entertainment companies, including International Documentary Assoc., In-Finn-Ity Prods. and Lynch Ent. Altounian sits on the board of directors for a number of corporations that are creating breakthrough technologies in emerging growth industries, including Cereplast Inc., Imaging3 Inc. and XSUNX, Inc.

Platinum Studios (www.platinumstudios.com)adapts and produces its massive library of characters for film, television and all other media. Headquartered in Beverly Hills, Rosenberg founded Platinum Studios in 1997, following a career in the comicbook industry as creator and head of Malibu Comics, which he sold amidst other offers to Ronald Perelman of Marvel Comics.